Comments on: Get Lamp

Get Lamp

SpacemanStix — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 16:42:27 -0800

"GET LAMP is a documentary about Text Adventures (later Interactive Fiction), the storytellers who created them, and their unique place in the history of computer games." Although not completed yet (it will be soon, as filming was completed in October), this documentary will contain 76 interviews with people involved in the industry at the time, including Scott Adams (not the cartoonist), Marc Blanc and Tim Anderson (who both worked on Zork, one of the best known examples of the medium) . Here's a teaser trailer. And here are some fun representatives of the genre to play online.

By: juv3nal

juv3nal — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 16:45:02 -0800

Adam Cadre does some neat IF things.

By: SpacemanStix

SpacemanStix — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 16:49:27 -0800

I see that they interviewed him for this documentary as well.

By: danb

danb — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 16:49:59 -0800

By MetaFilter's own Jason Scott!

By: mumkin

mumkin — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 16:53:44 -0800

Danb beat me to it. Previously, on MetaFilter.

By: ardgedee

ardgedee — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 16:53:45 -0800

A long time ago, among the geeks of an earlier generation, that would have been, "Scott Adams (not the game designer)."

By: uncanny hengeman

uncanny hengeman — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 17:04:02 -0800

Great memories. Something about a gnome. Having to go out and find something and give it to him to proceed. On an Apple 2 in the school library cica 1980. Or Apple ][ as the cool kiddies were wont to spell it. But then along came the game Autobahn and all its HOT ACTION...

By: SpacemanStix

SpacemanStix — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 17:05:37 -0800

Actually, it was Dave Anderson, not Tim who was interviewed. And I don't know if Dave worked on Zork, although he did work at Infocom as a product tester and game writer. Sorry for the error.

By: pompomtom

pompomtom — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 17:31:17 -0800

Metafilter: I don't know the word 'Metafilter:'

By: rokusan

rokusan — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 17:46:00 -0800

Metafilter: you can't do that here.

By: miss lynnster

miss lynnster — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 17:46:11 -0800

I love lamp.

By: not_on_display

not_on_display — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 17:54:17 -0800

Auto-cannibalism is not the answer.

By: ersatz

ersatz — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:05:04 -0800

Metafilter: It is pitch snark. You are likely to be eaten by a grue.

By: stbalbach

stbalbach — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:13:37 -0800

BBS documentary was a monument to a generation, it went beyond computers. There were so many sub-cultures he could have made multiple films. Fantastic. I'd buy Get Lamp on DVD - please re-post when it's out!

By: Mister_A

Mister_A — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:15:36 -0800

Damn that's good! *I don't think the MetaFilter would agree with you*

By: sammyo

sammyo — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:21:13 -0800

xyzzy

By: Civil_Disobedient

Civil_Disobedient — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:22:38 -0800

That reminds me, I think I'll have a nice big cup of no tea.

By: infinitewindow

infinitewindow — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:30:13 -0800

> get ye flask You can't get ye flask!

By: sneakin

sneakin — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:34:31 -0800

Interactive fiction is rad and the documentary looks cool but it's a little soft focusy and light piano for a documentary about computer games. Totally the wrong feel unless it all ends in tragedy. Does it all end in tragedy? x tragedy.

By: Justinian

Justinian — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 18:43:35 -0800

I'd call the current monomaniacal focus on consoles, FPS, and RTS to be ending in tragedy, yes.

By: Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese

Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 19:21:32 -0800

Great subject for a documentary. I've been wondering what those guys looked like for about 20 years, now I'll get to find out.

By: SansPoint

SansPoint — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 19:23:57 -0800

sammyo A hollow voice says, "Cretin."

By: jeffkramer

jeffkramer — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 19:38:14 -0800

I wonder if there's anything included about MUDs and MUCKs and MOOs. A documentary version of My Tiny Life or The CyberGypsies would be pretty cool.

By: Deathalicious

Deathalicious — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 19:54:25 -0800

By: Artw

Artw — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 20:12:42 -0800

/Artw sits down and sings a song about gold.

By: the dief

the dief — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 20:17:20 -0800

Can I just jump in here and say that, even after all these years, the game Suspended still kicks my ass? I got continually thrashed by it as a kid, and I get thrashed by it now. And this was after I solved Planetfall by myself even.

By: molybdenum

molybdenum — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 20:31:07 -0800

I notice that Robert Pinsky (the former poet laureate) is on the list of people interviewed. I thought perhaps it was a different Robert Pinsky, but the picture sure looks like the poet laureate Pinsky. Did he write a text-based game? Cause that would be so cool.

By: jcruelty

jcruelty — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 21:40:42 -0800

Mind Forever Voyaging was my favorite. I still remember the emotion I felt when projected into the future simulated world... and seeing what had happened

By: not_on_display

not_on_display — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 21:56:35 -0800

You are staring at a blue screen with words on it. >

By: MrBadExample

MrBadExample — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 21:57:11 -0800

Please tell me this documentary mentions Pick Up the Phone Booth and Die. Even if it doesn't, please tell me it does.

By: jscott

jscott — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 22:43:25 -0800

Wow. Well, a few people mentioned that my documentary got on Metafilter. Strange time for it to be out there, since I'm still editing it and there's still a lot of work left to be done. SpacemanStix already corrected the misunderstanding about "Hollywood Dave Anderson" versus "Tim Anderson". Dave has been interviewed, it is still very up in the air whether Tim will agree to do so. Not everyone approached has said yes. But a lot have. Filming is actually continuing through January. But editing is also happening. My stuff always takes longer than I plan to, because I'm into this whole "make it not suck by rushing it" thing. The teaser trailer reaction is a source of amusement for me. A recent comment just complained that the "teaser trailer" lacked much concrete information and didn't seem to let on much. Well.... yes. Yes, that is Poet Laureate Emeritus Robert Pinksy. He wrote a game called "Mindwheel" in the 1980s for Synapse Software. Anyway, I appreciate the interest in the flick! I hope to live up to it.

By: hades

hades — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 22:45:33 -0800

Robert Pinsky, later the poet laureate, did write (or at least design) Mindwheel.

By: honest knave

honest knave — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 22:50:02 -0800

Best wishes for the project, Jason! This doc more than just pretty cool; it will continue to be a very valuable resource for people thinking and writing about IF and computer storytelling in the near and far future.

By: Malor

Malor — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 22:51:06 -0800

It is pitch black in the Watergate Hotel. You are likely to be eaten by agnew.

By: billder

billder — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 22:51:42 -0800

plugh

By: hades

hades — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 22:52:03 -0800

Worth reading while you wait for Get Lamp to be completed: Nick Montfort's Twisty Little Passages. I'm very much looking forward to this film.

By: johngoren

johngoren — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 22:59:14 -0800

The clip of Steve Meretzky (pictured) talking about the "shooting star" is right on--this was a fleeting moment in Cambridge, MA when the ambitions of adventure gaming had never been higher. The new IF being made is kind of cool, in the sense that a literary magazine is kind of cool, but the original was like Catcher in the Rye. The new stuff is easy to admire but doesn't have that fire of catching the spirit of a time in computer history. A Mind Forever Voyaging changed my life.

By: jscott

jscott — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 23:03:56 -0800

Oh, and in relation to this project, there was a music video shot about them: It is Pitch Dark. Directed by me, featuring MC Frontalot and Steve Meretzky.

By: honest knave

honest knave — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 03:11:17 -0800

johngoren: you're right. But the new authors are doing something which guys like Meretzky and Moriarty were only beginning to access-- the spirit of an innovative time in literary history.

By: Vindaloo

Vindaloo — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 07:00:39 -0800

In the IF Incredible Hulk for the Commodore 64, how do you get out of that first room? I have been wondering about this for, oh, 20 years now.

By: sneakin

sneakin — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 07:25:34 -0800

This thread just doesn't do justice to IF if it doesn't mention Emily Short. Her work is frikken amazing, particularly (in my opinion) Bronze, although all of her interactive games definitely push the boundaries of normal text game interaction. Agreed, Bronze is the bomb. Floatpoint as well. Also, it seems that in 2007 Emily Short's life still revolves around IF, which is cool in itself.

By: sneakin

sneakin — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 07:25:53 -0800

And by 2007 I mean 2008.

By: knave

knave — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 08:06:51 -0800

Cool as this documentary may or may not be, I'm not sure I understand how this FPP brings us the best of the web.

By: jscott

jscott — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 08:21:14 -0800

I agree with you; a better time would have been when it comes out later this year. But I guess we'll get one of those too! Metafilter is now posting so frequently, I can barely keep up with it. Guess everyone wants to help.

By: Standeck

Standeck — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 08:48:54 -0800

rub lamp - "Aladdin you are not!" *rubs lamp anyway*

By: gorgor_balabala

gorgor_balabala — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 08:58:56 -0800

SpacemanStix has entered the room.

By: SpacemanStix

SpacemanStix — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 09:07:09 -0800

I'm not sure I understand how this FPP brings us the best of the web. I thought just seeing the pictures of all those involved in the industry in one place would be worth the price of admission! Although, my primary intent for posting was to provide a springboard for discussing an interesting time in history, centered around a really cool project. Good luck on finishing your film, Jason. I didn't know you were a member here when I posted, so that was a pretty cool coincidence.

By: SpacemanStix

SpacemanStix — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 09:12:11 -0800

SpacemanStix has exited the room.

By: fearfulsymmetry

fearfulsymmetry — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 10:06:44 -0800

GO NORTH

By: hanov3r

hanov3r — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 11:53:09 -0800

I really enjoyed Jason's BBS documentary (even though my fiancee think's it's just further proof that I'm a total dork), and I can't wait to see this one, too. He's also working on an arcade documentary, which leads me to believe that Jason's taken "documenting Hanov3r's teenage years" as his life's project.

By: SpacemanStix

SpacemanStix — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 11:57:04 -0800

an arcade documentary I think the nostalgic part of my brain just exploded.

By: Artw

Artw — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 13:26:46 -0800

Time passes...

By: damehex

damehex — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 17:59:16 -0800

In the IF Incredible Hulk for the Commodore 64, how do you get out of that first room? I have been wondering about this for, oh, 20 years now. Where you wake up strapped to a chair? I think you had to chew on your tongue or something, in order to go all Mr Green Machine on your bonds. Then, I donno. Maybe: >HULK SMASH

By: damehex

damehex — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 18:01:03 -0800

PS I warn you not to torrent the entire catalog of C64 games and a current build of one of the popular emulators, otherwise you will find yourself answering these kinds of questions for yourself for the next month or two. The first one I approached was "Was Impossible Mission really impossible, or did I just never win?"

By: jscott

jscott — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 18:09:56 -0800

(You are tied to a chair) BITE LIP (you become the Hulk and break your ropes)

By: Vindaloo

Vindaloo — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 05:52:54 -0800

(You are tied to a chair) BITE LIP (you become the Hulk and break your ropes) Ah yes! But if I recall correctly the room then filled up with gas and made you revert back to Bruce Banner. Breaking the bonds was easy, but getting out of the room I never achieved.